1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a machine for laying underground pipe, cable, lines or the like and includes an articulately connected frame in the form of a front powered tractive unit and a rear powered tractive unit having a drawbar and cable laying plow connected thereto and an operating control assembly mounted thereon to enable observation of the cable laying operation by the operator of the machine.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Cable and flexible pipe or line laying machines are well known and employ a tractor type vehicle having a cable reel or reels mounted thereon and a cable laying plow towed thereby. The vehicle used frequently is in the form of a crawler-type tractor utilizing the superior traction qualities of such a vehicle to provide sufficient force to pull the cable laying plow through the ground. When moving such vehicles from one site to another, it is usually necessary to load the vehicle onto a transporting trailer for over-the-road movement. Also, the characteristics of the terrain and the forces necessary to pull the cable plow through the ground sometimes exceed the capabilities of such a vehicle in which event two such vehicles are connected in tandem with the second vehicle being used merely to add traction force to the cable laying plow. Many patents exist relating to cable laying plows and machines for laying cable with the following U.S. Pat. Nos. illustrating the state of this art. Nos. 1,863,671, June 21, 1932; 3,032,903, May 8, 1962; 3,037,357, June 5, 1962; 3,140,745, July 14, 1964; 3,170,300, Feb. 23, 1965; 3,232,358, Feb. 1, 1966; 3,348,383, Oct. 24, 1967; 3,431,741 Mar. 11, 1969; 3,608,322, Sept. 28, 1971; 3,747,357, July 24, 1973.